Machine for making &#34;gem&#34; paper clips



e Sheets-Sheet 1 Sept. 29, 1942. F. MAGIDSON MACHINE FOR MAKING GEMPAPER CLIPS Filed 001:. 30, 1941 Sept, 29, 1942-. F. MAemsoN MACHINE FORMAKING GEM PAPER CLIPS Filed Oct. 30, 1941 e Shets-Sheet? Sept. 29,1942. F. MAGIDSON 2,297,156

MACHINE FOR MAKING GEM PAPER CLIPS e sheets-s eets Filed Oct. 30, 1941Sept. 29, 1942. IF. MAGIDSON 2,297,156

mom-us FOR MAKING GEM PAPER CLIPS- Filed on. so, 1941 s Sheets-Sheet 4Sept. 29, 1942. v F. MAGIDSO N MACHINE FOR MAKING GEM PAPER CLIPS 6Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Oct. 30. 1941 Sept. 29, 1942. F. MAGIDSON 2,297,156

MACHINE FOR MAKING GEM PAPERCLIPS FiledOct. 30, 1941 6 Sheets-Sheet 6lg? .25. 160 F6? A Ju *ij" Patented Sept. 29, 1942 UNITED STATESPATENTOFFICE 2,297,156 MACHINE FOR MAKING GEM PAPE CLIPS .FrankMagidson, Pittsburgh, Pa.,' assignor to Pittsburgh Cut Wire Company, acorporation 7 of Pennsylvania Application October 30, 1941, Serial No.417,130 18 Claims. (Cl. 140- -82) lie in contact.

A further object is to produce an. automatic machine which not onlyforms such clipsquickly and accurately, but delivers predeterminednumbers of the same to the boxes in which they are to be shipped.

These as well as other objects, which will be apparent to those skilledin this particular art, I

attain by the-method and machine described in I the specification andillustrated in the. drawings accompanying and forming part of thisapplication.

In the drawings:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of,the major opcrating parts of themachine of this invention with a portion of the box carrier broken away;

Fig. 2-is a perspective view of the reciprocating wire feeder, theroller straightener and the'mecha nism for nullifying the efiect of coilset in the wire and giving to the wire a definitenpredeten mined setbefore it enters the straightener roller; Fig. 3 is a diagrammaticlayout of the rollers of the last two of these mechanismsand shows thetravel of the wire ,therethrough;

Fig. 4 is a skeleton perspective view of the wire bending spindles ofthe clip forming portion of the machine, the reciprocating mandrelsabout which the wire is bent and about which said spin dles rotate, andthe mechanisms for rotating said spindles and reciprocating saidmandrels;

Fig. 5 is a detail perspective view of the mecha-. nism forreciprocating the mandrels about which I the wire is bent by thespindles; 1

Fig. 6 is a perspective view looking toward the forward ends of saidspindles and mandrels. This view shows a finished clip in position ontwo of the mandrels just before it is to be discharged into the chute bythe knockout blade which is also illustrated in this view;

Figs. 7, 8' and 9 are views in side elevation of the three mandrelsabout which the wire is bent during the loop forming operation. In theseviews the mandrels are shown twice their actual size;

'Fig. 10 is a detail view, partially in elevation and partially insection, of one wire bending spindle and its mandrel. This view showsthe position of the reciprocating rack members by which the spindles arerotated;

Fig. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary view in sectional elevation, of oneof the end loop wire bending spindles with its mandrel in position as itappears just prior to the loop expanding oper-.,

ation;

Fig. 12 is a view partially in perspective and partially in section andshows the forward ends of the three spindles and their mandrels. and thewire anchoring and cutting means. This view shows the wire in placewithin the loop forming part of. the machine with the wire anchored bythe cutter blade before any loop has been formed;

Fig. 13 shows a portion of the mechanism shown in Fig. 12 with the wirecompletely severed and just before the last loop is formed;

Figs. 14 to 20 inclusive are detail views of the rotating cams entering'into the make-up of the machine. These views include the rollers whichare carried by the cam followers or follower levers; Fig. 21 is a viewof a Gem clip such as made by the method and machine of this invention;

Fig. 22 is a perspective view'of the clip knockout mechanism, the boxcarrier, the mechanisms for I counting the clips and rotating the boxcarrier in a step by step manner so that a predetermined number of clipsis deposited in each box;

Fig. 23 is a perspective view of one of the box holders of the boxcarrier;

Fig. 24 is a perspective view of one of the boxes; Fig. 25 is a top planview-of the 'box carrier and its operating mechanism andis taken in a.plane just below the floor of the box carrier; and Fig. 26 is a detailview of part of the box carrier operating mechanism.

In the machine of this invention, a reciproeating wire feeder pulls thewire from a coil through a roller wire straightener which; aside fromthe wire straightening rollers, includes roll-- crs for removing the setin the coiled wire as received from the wire manufacturers. 'I'hel wirefeeder'operates in a step by step manner and advances a length ofstraightened wire past the wire cutting device and into position withinthe bending mechanism which forms the loops of the clip. As soon as suchlength of wire reaches position within the bending mechanism, the cutterblade operates to partially cut through the wire, thereby locking thesame in position. The wire feeder then travels back into position tostart its next feeding'stroke. Two of the loops of the clip are thenformed. The cutter then completes its out through the 'wire and thethird loop is formed. The end loops are then expanded while the straightouter side members of the clip are held in position against outwardlateral movement. This operation forces the outer straight side membersinto contact with the inner straight side members and causes them toremain in this @081- tion by giving to the end loops and outer straightside members a permanent set. Immediately after the loop expandingoperation is completed, the finished clip is discharged downwardlythrough a chute.

A box carrier which forms part of the machine is arranged to rotatebelow said chute about a vertical axis. This carrier is provided with anannular series of holders adapted to carry the boxes in which the clipsare to be shipped. These boxes pass in succession below said chute.Rotation of the box carrier is intermittent and the periods are adjustedthat each box is halted below the chute until it has received itsdefinite quota of clips. The machine thus not i only forms the clipsautomatically but counts and delivers the same into the to be shipped.

Wire feeder and wire straightener I have found that since the wire usedin making the clips is coiled and has coil set, a simple form of rollerwire straightener alone is not adequate, because when such astraightener is used alone, the unsupported end of the wire leaving thestraightener has a tendency to bend out of position, and this may bemany direction. Even though such bending may be slight, it makes itdiflicult to keep the straight side members of the clip in a commonplane.

In order to make use of a simple wire straightener, and be assured thatthe wire leaving the straightener will be straight, or will at leastalways bend but slightly in the plane in which the clips are formed, Isubject the wire, prior to the wire straightening operation, to anoperation which practically removes or nullifles the strains due tocoiling. In such operation, I subject the wire to a looping operationwhich is much more severe than that to which it was subjected duringcoiling. I- accomplish this bending in one plane, in this machine in avertical plane, since the bending operations by which the clip loops areformed take place in a vertical plane. This looping before straighteningis so severe that all tendency of the wire to bend out of this verticalplane after leaving the straightener is overcome. Whatever tendencythere is to bend is but slight and can be overcome by simple adjustmentof one or at most two of the wire straightener rollers.

The wire W is drawn by the feeder mechanism (hereinafter referred to asthe wire feeder) from a coil (not shown) through the wire straightenermechanism wire straightener). The wire feeder and wire straightener areshown in upper right-hand part of Fig. land in more detail in Figs. 2and 3.

The wire feeder comprises a carriage 30 mounted forreciprocation withinguides 3| on-frame member 32 of the machine. Th carriage is providedwith an upper portion 33 which, laterally thereof, overlies wire W andat its opposite ends with wire guides Reciprocation of by an eccentric35 chine. 2, is

extending is provided 34. the carriage is accomplished on main shaft 36of the ma- This eccentric, as will be seen from Fig. arranged tooscillate a horizontal boxes in which they are (hereinafter referred toas the a general way in the which carries a lever arm 38. Lever arm 38,by means of a link 39, is connected to one arm of a bell crank leverpivoted at 40 to the carriage. An extension 4i of the bell crank levercarries a hardened wire contact member 42, and from the construction asillustrated in Fig. 2, it will be apparent that as lever. arm ll swingscounterclockwise from the position shown in said figure. the firsteffect is to cause contact member 42 to move up to pinch the wirebetween its contact edge and the under face of portion 33, overlying thewire. Continued movement of the lever arm in the same direction causesthe carriage to move toward the left and propel the wire ahead of it andthrough hole 43 in cylindrical cutter block 44 and into that portion ofthe machine within which the wire is bent into clip form.

The wire passes up through a guide over a guide roller 45, through aguide block 46 through the passes of the rollers by means of which thecoil set in the wire is removed or nullified and through the passes ofthe rollers of the simple wire straightener.

I have found that when making Gem paper 5 clips of the size shown inFig. 21, from steel wire known as tinned paper clip wire, I can obtainhighly satisfactory results by employing six rollers arranged asdisclosed in Fig. 3 of the draw All of the rollers are the same and areapproximately one and three-sixteenths of an inch in diameter (to beexact 1.181), and are mounted on anti-friction bearings. I preferablyuse standard ball bearings as the rollers and cut the wire groove in theouter race of such bearings.

v The grooves in all of the rollers are the same and have a depth whichis at least equal to onehalf the diameter of the wire, which diameterfor clips of the size shown in Fig. 21, is .041".

The axes of lower rollers 41 and 48 are located in vertically extendingparallel planes which are spaced apart a distance of 1% inches, and theaxes of the upper rollers 49, 50, 5|, and 52 are similarly located inparallel planes which are also spaced apart a distance of 1 inches. Thevertical plane within which the axis of roller 45 is located is exactlymidway between the planes within which the axes of rollers 41 and 48 arelocated and the vertical plane within which the axis of roller islocated is exactly midway between the vertical planes within of roller48 and ii are located.

Rollers 41, 48 and 49 are carried by holders which fit within verticallyextending slots in and can be adjusted to vary the height of saidrollers, by'adjusting screws which are respectively numbered 53, 54 and55. A holder for the spindle of roller 5| is slidable means of a lockingdevice 51. such position, its axis is approximately 4;" above the axesof rollers 50 and 52. which axes are fixed.

A screw 58 carried by a bracket 59, projecting laterally of frame member32, is adjusted so that its lower end lightly bears on the top of thewire as it passes over roller 5|. This prevents upward and backwardmovement of the wire when it is severed by the cutting blade.

Roller 41 is so adjusted that the bottom of its groove lines up with thebottom of hole 43 which passes through the longitudinal center' of thecylindrical cutter block.

In order. to thread the wire into position in shaft 3! the machine, itwill be apparent that it is neces which the axes sary to lowerrolleruntil its top is below the bottoms of rollers 50 and 52. After the. wireis threaded into position, roller BI is raised and locked in position,as shown in Fig. 3.

Wire bending mechanism The mechanism into which the wire enters after itpasses through cylindrical cutter 44, and by means of which it is bentinto clip form, is .located beneath a cover plate 60.

This mechanism comprises three horizontally positioned spindles 6|; 62and 63, mounted for rotation within bearing bushings such as bushings64-64, which are preferably pressed into parallel horizontal cylindricalbores 65 located below said cover plate in frame part 66. Each of thesespindles is provided with an axial cylindrical bore for the reception ofa generally cylindrical mandrel. These mandrels are held againstrotation and are arranged to be periodically reciprocated lengthwise ofthe spindles at proper times during ,operation of the machine. Themandrel located within spindle 6| is numbered 61 (Fig. 7) that withinspindle 62 is numbered 68 (Fig. 8) and that within spindle s3 isnumbered 69 (Fig. 9). Each of the spindles adjacent its outer end isdrilled to provide a bore which parallels the bore in the mandrel, andextends from the outer end face of the spindle to a cross slot such as10 (Figs. 4, 10 and 11). A tungsten pivot bolt carbide pin is fittedinto each of these bores and extends from a point adjacent the innerface of said cross slot 10 outwardly beyond the forward 11 is providedwith gear teeth end face of its spindle a suflicient distance toproperly engage wire W to bend the same around the mandrel. The pin forspindle 6| is numbered 1|,that for spindle 62 is numbered 12 and thatfor spindle 63 is numbered 13.'

Spindle 6| is provided with gear teeth 14,spindle 62 with gear teeth 15and spindle 63 with gear teeth 16.

Parallel horizontally positioned rack bars 11, 18 and 19 are mounted forreciprocation at right angles to said spindles and within guidewaysformed in'frame part 66 of the machine. Bar with rack teeth 80 whichmesh 14 of spindle 6|. Bar .16 is provided with rack teeth 8| which meshwith gear teeth 16 of spindle 63 and bar 19 is provided with rack teeth82 which mesh with gear teeth 15 of spindle 62.

An adjustable link 83 connects the upper end of a follower lever 11.Said follower lever carries a cam contact roller 85 which is held incontact, by means of a helical spring 86, with a cam 81. Rack bar 18, bymeans of an adjustable link 86, is connected to the upper end of afollower lever 89. This follower lever carries a cam contact roller 90which is held in contact with cam 9| by means of a helicalspring 92.Rack bar 19, by means of an adjustable link 93, is connected to theupper end of a follower lever 94. Lever 94 is provided with a held incontact with a cam 96 by means of a helical spring 91 These cams are allsecured to main shaft 36 of the machine.

Each spindle, adjacent its rear end is provided with a circumferentialgroove 98, and a retainer plate 99 secured to housing part 66, bymeansof screws I00, is provided with three semi-circular slots whichpermit. the retainer plate to extend into the circumferential grooves 96and lock the spindles against endwise movement. I

cam contact roller 95 which is Secured to each mandrel adjacent its rearend, by means of a set screw I0,I, is a block I02, and

each of these blocks is provided with a bottom groove I03 designed toloosely embrace an upstanding flange I04 of a mandrel operating memberI06 (Fig. 5).

Member I05 is secured for vertical adjustment within a lever I06 whichis pivoted, by means of a pivot bolt I01, to-a vertically extending postI08. Post I06 forms part of the frame of the machine.

Lever I06 is provided with a forwardly extending arm I09 and isperiodically rocked about I01 by a horizontal cam follower lever IIO.This follower lever at one end carries a cam contact roller III, and atits opposite end carries an adjusting screw II2, having its upper endbearing on the under face of extension I09 of lever I06. Follower leverI10 is operated by a. cam I I3 keyed to main shaft 36 in line with saidroller III. Roller III is yieldingly held. in contact with cam l I3 bymeans of two relatively stiff helical springs II4-I I4 which arepocketed in lever I06 and have their outer ends bearing against a plateII5 bolted to the rear side of post' I08; V

The outer end portion II6 of mandrel 61 is of such diameter as to forminner loop II1 of the clip when the wire is bent around the same.Mandrel 68 has a cylindrical portion III! which isof such diameter as toform end loop -I I9 when the wire is bent around this cylindricalportion,

' and mandrel 69 is provided with a cylindrical 84 to one end of rackbar portion I20 around which the wire isbent to form end loop I2I of theclip. 1

Extending outwardly tions 8 and I20 of mandrels 68..and 69, respectively, are portions in the nature of truncated cones and by means ofwhich the end loops H9 and are expanded or stretched as will be laterexplained. 1

Wire cutter blade and its operating mechanism A wire cutter blade I24,which cooperates with the lower half of the exit end of hole 43 incylindrical cutter block 44, is carried by a member I25 which isvertically reciprocated slightly by an oscillating 'lever I26, to oneend of which it is connected by a link I21. The opposite end of leverI26, by means of ,an adjustable link I28, is connected to one end. of afollower lever I29 carrying a cam contact roller I30. This roller isheld in engagement with a main shaft cam I3I by Cutter block 44 is somounted that it is free to slide lengthwise in its bore in frame post32a, Its body portion is slightly longer; say about than the width ofsaid post. The entrance end ofthe cutter block is formed with an annularflange 44a which surrounds hole 43 and is chamfered to form a bell mouthfor said hole. A stiff blade spring 43a,;-secured to frame post 32aabove the cutter block, is provided which. is slightly greater indiameter than the external diameter of said flange. This permits spring43a to bear against the end of the body of the cutter block surroundingsaid flange and yieldingly hold the block in contact with the cutterblade. it will be understood that the movement of the cutter blade is soslight that it never moves out of contact with the exit end of thecutterv block. v.The constructions-and arrangement of these parts issuch that the cutter blade is, in effect, self-sharpening and I havefoundb beyond cylindrical por I22 and I23 which are formed I2I of theclip with a circular hole that the cutting of wire W is effected withoutleaving any burrs on the ends of the wire.

Ada'ustment and operation of the wire cutting blade and the wire bendingmechanism Before proceeding further with the description of 'theremainder of the machine, it is believed advisable to describe theadjustment and operation of the wire severing and wire bending or clipforming mechanisms.

The wire feeder on each feeding stroke, propels a length of wire Wthrough hole 43 of the cutter block and into position in the bendingmechanism as shown in Fig. 12. At this time spindles 6|, 62 and 63 areat rest and with their pins H, 12 and 13 located directly over theirmandrels 61, 68 and 69; wire W during travel into position passingbetween' the mandrels and-said pins. As soon as the wire reaches thisposition, rise I33 of cam I 3I causes cutter blade I24 to partially cutthrough wire W. As soon as this occurs, cam 81, through follower lever94 and rack bar 11, rotates spindle 6I counterclockwise, as indicated atthe left of Fig. 12, wherebyits bender pin H is caused to bend wire Waround mandrel 61 as indicated at I34 in said figure, thus forming theinner loop II 1 of the clip (Fig. 21)

The positions of mandrels 61, 68 and 69, with relation to' the forwardfaces of the spindles, are

- so adjusted that as soon as this first loop is formed, rise I of camII3 swings lever I96 far enough toward the rear of the machine to movethe forward end of mandrel 61 behind the Q forward face of spindle 6|.As soon as this occurs, spindle 62, by means of rack bar 19, is rotatedcounterclockwise carrying its bender pin 12 to the position shown inFig.6, whereby wire W is bent around part II8 of mandrel 68 to form endloop II9 of the clip. As soon as this loop is formed, rise I36 of camI3I causes the cutter bar to complete its cut and free the wire. As soonas this occurs, spindle 63, by means of cam 9I and rack bar 18 is causedto rotate in a clockwise direction, causing its bender pin 13 to bendthe wire around part I 20 of mandrel 69 to form the other end loop I2Iof the clip. Concentric faces I31 and I39 of earns 96 and 9Irespectively (Figs. 17 and 19) to remain in the position shown in Fig. 6until end loops H9 and HI are stretched by tapered expanding parts I22and In of mandrels 66 and 69, respectively.

- This movement of the mandrels is caused byrise I39 of cam II3 (Fig.15).

By referring to Figs. 6, 10 and 12, it will be seen that the forwardends of spindles 6|, 62 and 63 are located within circular openings in aplate-like block I43, which, by means of suitable screws, is securedagainst the forward face -of housing part 66 (see Fig. 1). A portionI43a v of the forward face of block I43 is flush'with the ends of thespindles, while part I 43b of said block extends forwardly of face 311,and its lower face I430, in co-operation with pins 1|, 12 and 13 andmandrels 61, 68 and 69 forms the means for guiding the wire intoposition within the loop bending or forming mechanism of the machine.

Secured in spaced relation within a groove I44 in part I43b of blockI43, are hardened members I45 and I46 which form side guides for areciprocating clip knockout blade I41 (Fig. 6). The lower end I45a ofhardened member I45 projects downwardly immediately in front of theforward end face of spindle 62 while the lower end I46a of hardenedmember I46 projects downwardly immediately in front of the forward endface of spindle 63.

By referring to Fig. 6, it will be seen that when the tapered loopexpanding portions I22 and I23 of mandrels 69 .and 69 are being movedinwardly of spindles 62 and'63, the substantially straight side membersI49, I and I42 of the clip immediately adjacent end loops 9 and I26 areprevented from .moving laterally outward by pins 12 and 13 inco-operation with said ends.

I45a'and I 46a; I'I'hus, as these tapered expanding portions of themandrels are withdrawn into their spindles, and through end loops H9 andI 2I of the clip, these loops are expanded and the various parts of theclip are given a permanent set. .This operation causes the adjacentsubstantially straight side members of the clip to lie permanentlyincontact one with the other.

As soon as th1s expanding operation is performed, rise I48 of cam 43causes mandrels 69 and 69 to be fully retracted or moved into theirspindles, thus freeing the clip.

As soon as the clip is freed, .a knockout blade I 41, through the agencyof a cam I48, a follower I49, an adjustable link I50 and a pivoted leverI5I causes the knockout blade to force the finished clip down into thechute I52. A spring I53 holds the roller 01' follower arm I49 in contactwith cam I48. A plate I54 (Fig. 10) by means of screws I55 is securedagainst the forward face of part I43b of block I43, and, having openingsthrough which the mandrels extend, forms a cover forthe wire bendingmechanism. In addition to this, it holds the knockout blade in placewithin its groove I44.-

Main shaft 36 of the machine, to which all of the cams are secured, isjournaled in bearings in posts I 56 and I51 which extend upwardly frombase I58 of the machine. Frame part 22 as well as housing part 66 aresupported by said base which in turn is supported at the desired heightby suitable legs, not shown.

The machine is adapted to be belt driven by a motor (not shown) and isprovided with a-belt wheel I59. Reduction gearing, indicated by dottedlines in the left-hand upper corner of Fig. 25, is 'interp'osed betweenbelt wheel shaft I60 and main shaft 36 of the machine.

Boa: carrier and clip coun ting mechanism The box carrier table which'isnumbered I9I- comprises a circular flat metal plate which is supportedfor rotation in front of chute I52 by a-support, bar I 62 secured to theunderside of base I58 of the machine and which projects forwardlytherefrom in line with said chute. Projecting upwardly through said barnear its outer end is a stub shaft I63.

A pawl carrier I64 having a lower annular bearing portion I65 rests onthe top surface of bar I62 and loosely surrounds said stub shaft. Pawlcarrier I64 near one end carries a pivoted pawl I66 and an abutment-I61.A spring I68 positioned between an arm I69 of said pawl and saidabutment I61 yieldingly forces said pawl into engagement with the teethI19 of ratchet wheel I1I.

Ratchet wheel "I loosely surrounds stub shaft I63 and bears on the uppersurface of pawl carrier I64. Box carrier I6I is supported by ratchetwheel I10 and is secured thereto by bolt and slot connections such asI12, thus permitting angular adjustment between the ratchet wheel andthe box .carrier.

A series of box holding units I13 (such as diswith the end'portions I16of its top folded down into closed position, as shown in said figure,and with the remaining portion I11 of its top projectin'g vertically andlying in front of upstanding wall I18 of its box holding unit.

Rear wall I19 of each unit is adapted to lie in line with or slightlybehind the rear wall of chute I52 as the units move in successionbeneath the chute.

Roof I89 of each stall rectangular opening I8I which is of slightly lesssize than the opening in the top of a box as the box is inserted withinits stall. i

The end walls I82 of each unit I13 are inclined inwardly from the sideedges of the unit to opening I8I,and these inclined walls, together withthe front and rear walls I18 and I19 form a hopper for receiving andguiding the clips into the boxes as they are discharged through chuteEach front wall portion, as shown at I83, to of the boxes from their,stalls by the machine.

In the machine chosen for illustrating this invention, there are fifteenbox holding units on table I6I and there are therefore fifteen teeth inratchet wheel I19.

A ratchet wheel I84, having one hundred teeth I85, (since 100 clips aredeposited in each box I) is mounted for rotation about a 'stub shaft I86carried by support arm I62, and has its under face spaced 2. distanceabove said support arm. A pin I81 projects downwardly from the lowerface of ratchet wheel I84.

A pawl bar I88 carrying a pawl I89 at its free end, for engagement withteeth I85 of ratchet wheel I84, at its opposite end-is pivotallyconnected, as at I99, to the lower end of a follower lever I9I. Thisfollower leveris pivotally mounted on a stub shaft I92, and, at itsupper end carries a cam contact roller I93 which is yieldingly forced bya spring I94, toward a cam I95 on main shaft 36.

One end of spring I94 is located in a pocket formed for its reception infollower lever I9I, while its opposite end is located in a pocket formedin a fixed abutment I96.

The follower lever, above its pivot point, is drilled and tapped toreceive an adjustment screw I91, which screwextends-through the followerlever in line with a fixed abutment I98. By means of adjustment screwI91, the throw of follower lever I9I', occasioned by cam I95, may beregulated.

The outer or I14 is provided with 2.

I18 is provided with a cutaway facilitate removal the operator of freeend portion of pawl bar I88 is carried within a guide block I99, and itspawl I89, is yieldingly forced into contact with teeth I85 of ratchetwheel I84 by means .of' a leaf spring 299, which spring is cai-ried byguide block I99. i

A lever arm 29I pivoted to support bar I62, by a pivot pin 292, at oneend carries a roller 293 positioned in the path of travel of pin l81which projects downwardly from the lower face of ratchet wheel I84.Lever arm 29I, at its opposite end from roller 293, is bifurcated as at294 and straddles a pin 295 which projects downwardly from pawl arm I64.

spring bar 206, which is rigidly secured to the top of pin I86, has itsopposite ends inclined downwardly so as to make I. ctional contact withthe top surface of ratchet wheel I84.

A bar 291 secured to the base of the machine, as at 298, carries a brakeshoe 299 which bears against the outer edge of table I6I. The frictionexerted by said brake shoe on said table edge is made adjustable by anadjustment screw 2I9 which projects through bar 291 and into contactwith the rear face of the brake shoe.

' The construction and arrangement of the clip counting mechanism, andthe box carrier rotating mechanism, is such that each time a clip isdischarged through chute I52 and into the box therebeneath by clipknockout bar I'41, pawl .I89 advances ratchet wheel I84 in a clockwisedirection the distance of one tooth, and, when 100 clips have beendeposited in said box, pin I81 depending from the underside of ratchetwheel I84 contacts with roller 293 and swings lever MI and pawl arm I64against the stress of spring ZII so that ratchet wheel "I is advancedone tooth by pawl I66, and table I6I secured thereto is moved. asuflicient distance counterclockwise to carry the next box holding unitI13 into clip receiving position below the chute.

The general operation of the machine as a whole wire depends upon thesize of clip being made.

The wire comes in coils and a coil is preferably placed over avertically extending tubular mem her having the general shape of atruncated cone. The coil lies in a horizontal position, so that as thewire is drawn therefrom into the machine, it spirals around, the tubularmember in its upward travel} the coil remaining stationary. The coil andits support have not been illustrated, since they form .no'part of themachine.

The reciprocating wire feeder, on its feeding strokes, draws or pulls alength of wire through the mechanism which first removes the coil set For the strainoccasionedin the wire during its previous coiling. The wirethen passes through drels; the Wire being fed between the mandrels andsaid .pins.

When the wire reaches position within this section, the cutter blade ismoved down to partially sever the length of wire which is to form oneclip. The spindle farthest removed from the cutter blade is then rotatedcounterclockwise whereby its pinbends the wire around its mandrel toform loop H1. Themandrels are then drawn inwardly of the spindles untilsaid end mandrel is wholly retracted within its spindle. The middlespindle is then rotated in a counterclockwise direction, forming thesecond loop H9, the smaller 'endloop of the clip. As soon as the secondloop is formed, the cutter blade completely severs the wire and thethird spindle is' then rotated in a clockwise direction to form thethird loop, loop III, the larger end loop of the clip.

The mandrels are then further withdrawn into the spindles. Thiswithdrawing operation causes 7 c said end loops.

which fornkthe. end loops of the' clip to expand The mandrels whichperform the expanding operation are then further drawn within thespindles thus freeing .the clip and allowing it to be forced by" theknockout blade downwardly into the chute. This chute conveys the clipinto the box therebeneath it on the box carrier.

5.In a machine for t a length of wire; three spindles, means for suc- Assoon as one hundred clips have been deposited in this box, the carrieris rotated until the next succeeding box reaches chute.

position beneath the After the wire has been threaded into position inthe machine and roll 5| .has been moved upto and secured in operatingposition, all that it is .necessary for the operator to do is to .placeempty-- boxes in the stalls oi the box holding units and remove theboxes as they are filled with clips.

It will be apparent-that a number of machines can-be tended by oneoperator, and it will also be apparent that the machine is entirelyautomatic in its operation.

The method of making Gem paper clips disclosed but not claimed hereinconstitutes the subject-matter of a copending divisional application forpatent filed by me on May 18, 1942, andserially numbered 443,430.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim 'as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. In amachine for making Gem paper clips from wire, spindles mountedfor partial rotation,- mandrels extending through said spindles, meansfor feeding wire past said spindles, means for rotating said spindles,means carried by said spindles for bending said wire around saidmandrels to form the loops of the clip, means for reciprocating saidmandrels in a .step by step manner, and means forming part of themandrels about which the end loops of the clip are formed for expandingsuch loops while the clip is held by the wire bending means.

2. In a machine for making Gem" clips from wire, spindles mounted forpartial rotation, mandrels extending through said spindles and mountedfor reciprocation therein, means for feeding wire into position withrelation to said mandrels, means associated with each spindle forbending the wire around its mandrel, means for reciprocating saidmandrels simultaneously and in a step by step manner, and'means formingpart of the mandrels about which the end loops of the clip are formedfor expanding said end loops while the clip is supported by themandrels.

3. In a machine for making Gem clips from wire, three spindles, meansfor successively oscillating said spindles, mandrels mounted forlengthwise movement within said spindles, means for reciprocating saidmandrels, means associated with saidspindles for bending the wire aboutsaid mandrels to form the loops of the clip, and means carried by themandrels about which the wire is bent to form the end loops of the clipfor expanding said end loops.

4. In a machine for making Gem paper clips from a length of wire. threespindles, means for successively oscillating said spindles, mandrels'end loops of the clip are formed for expandingsaid end loops.

I clips from wire having coil set, means for contension forming two ofthe clip loops .cessively oscillating said spindles, mandrels mountedfor lengthwise reciprocation within said said mandrels to form the loopsof the clip, and

means on the mandrel about which an end loop of the clip is formed forexpanding such loop.

6. In a machine for making Gem paper clips, wire cutting means, meansfor feeding a length of wire through said cutting means, means foroperating said cutting means to partially cut through the wire to holdthe same, means for forming two of the clip loops while the wire is heldby said cutting means, means the cutting means to complete the wire cut,and means. for forming the third loop of the clip after the out iscompleted. I

7. In a' machinefor making fGem" paper clips, wire cutting means, meansfor feeding a length of wire through said cuttingmeans, means for meansfor forming the third loop of th clip after the cut is completed, andmeans for expanding at least one of the end loops of the clip.

8. In a machine for making Gem wire, wire looping mechanism, means forfeeding the. wire ,into position within the wire looping mechanism, amovably mounted cutter I block having an opening therethrough throughwhich the wire passes, a cutter blade mounted for movement across thepath of said wire at the exit end of the cutter block, a spring foryieldin'gly holding said cutter block in contact with said cutter blade,and means for causing said cutter blade during its cutting movements tofirst partially cut the wire to hold the same against movement duringoperation of part of the wire looping mechanism and then to completelysever the wire preparatory to operation of the remainder of the wirelooping mechanism. I

9. In a machine for making Gem paper clips, wire cutting means, meansfor feeding a length of wire through said cutting means, means foroperating said cutting meansthrough th wire to hold the to partially cutsame, means for while the wire is held by said cutting means, means forcausing the" cutting means to complete the wire cut, means .for formingthe third loop of the clip after the cut is completed, and means forexpanding both en loops of the clip.

10. In a machine for making Gem paper clips, wire cutting means, meansfor feeding a length of wire through said cutting means, means foroperating said cutting 'means to partially cut through the wire to holdthe same, means for forming the center and one end loop of the clipwhile the wire is held by said cutting means, means for causing thecutting means to complete the wire cut, means for forming the other endloop of the clip after the cut is completed, and means co-operating withthe means forming the end loops of the clip for expanding said endloops.

11. In a machine for making Gem" paper tinuously looping a length ofwire under and in a single plane, means for straightening making Gemclips from for causing clips from for forming the outward movement saidwire alter looping. wire cutting means, means for operating said wirecutting means to partially cut through the wire to hold the same, meansfor forming two of the clip loops while the wire is held by the cuttingmeans, means for causing the cutting means to complete the wire cut, andmeans for forming the third loop of the clip.

12. In a machine for making cutting means, means for feeding a length oiwire through said cutting means, means for causing said cutting means topartially cut through the wire to hold the same against movement, meansinner loop or the clip, means for forming the small end loop of theclip, and moving the inner loop to position, means for causing thecutting means forming the large end loop or for expanding the end loopsof the clip while the outer side members or the clip are held againstlaterally of the clip.

for forming articles from wire having coil set, a wire straightenercomprising idler rollers having parallel axes, means for pulling thewire through said straightener, means comprising idler rollers havingaxes which parallel the axes of the straightener rollers, which saidwire before it enters the wire so constructed and l3. In a machinesingle plane bend out of said plane. due come.

14. In a machine for clips, wire cutting means, three loop formingdevices, means for ieeding wine past said cutting means and intoposition in said loop forming devices, means for operating said wirecutting means to partially cut through said wire to hold the sameagainst movement while two of said loop forming devices are operated,means for causing said cutting means after two of the clip loops areformed, means for operating the third loop forming means wire iscompletely severed and means for expanding both and loops or the clip.

15. In a machine for making Gem paper clips, 9. wire cutter, threespindles mounted for partial rotation, mandrels extending lengthwisethat any tendency to coil set is overmaking Gem paper through saidspindles, means ior'ieeding wire past said wire cutter and; intoposition with relation to said spindles, me for operating said wirecutter to partially out through'sald wire to hold the nst movement,means for rotating Pr e agai said spindles, means carried by saidspindles tor in" clips, wire lot moving said box carrier in a of boxholders, means bending said wire around said mandrels to form the loopsor the clip, means for reciprocating said mandrels, and means carried byat least one of said mandrels tor expanding the loop formed by bendingthe wire around said mandrel.

16. In a machine for making Gem", paper clips, wire cutting means, threeloop forming devices, means for feeding wire past said cutting means andinto position in said loop forming devices, means for operating saidwire cutting means to partially cut through said wire to hold the sameagainst movement while two or said loop forming devices are operated,means for causing said cutting means to completely sever the wire altertwo oi the clip loops are formed, means tor operating the third loopforming means alter the wire is completely severed and tapered meansmovable through at least one of the end loops or the clip for expandingthe same.

17. In a machine wire, bending means for forming the loops or the clip,a clip chute, means for discharging finished clips into said chute, abox carrier, means step by step manner-past said chute, and clipcounting means associated with the means for moving said box carrier,and by which movement or said carrier is initiated after a predeterminednumber of clips have been discharged through said chute.

18. In a machine for making Gem clips from wire, means for forming theloops of the clip, means for discharging finished clips, guiding meansfor the discharged clips, a carrier mounted for rotation and whichsupports an annular series for rotating said carrier past and below saidguiding means comprising a ratchet wheel below and secured to saidcarrier and having ratchet teeth which in number correspond to thenumber or box holders on the carrier, a second ratchet wheel spaced fromsaid ilrst ratchet wheel and having teeth which in number correspond tothe number of clipsto be deposited in each holder, pawl means operatingin synchronism with the'cllp discharging means for advancing said secondratchet wheel one tooth FRANK MAGHDSON.

for making -Gram clips from

